


Something Different

by OverlordPenguin



Category: Frozen (2013)
Genre: Cheating, F/F, F/M, Mainly Elsanna, Mentions of Part Belsa, Minor Kristanna, Modern AU, Roommates, mentions of BDSM
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-11
Updated: 2019-01-19
Packaged: 2019-06-08 17:29:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 21,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15248280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OverlordPenguin/pseuds/OverlordPenguin
Summary: When Kristoff inadvertently double books, he ends up having to include his roommate, Elsa, on a date with a plucky redhead. Elsa now has to decide whether she's going to be a good friend to Kristoff or if she's going to make a move on the girl that may have just stolen her heart.





	1. Chapter 1

Black tennis shoes tapped out an impatient rhythm at their apartment door as Elsa checked her cellphone for the thousandth time in… _thirty minutes_. She growled in frustration. Oh how she hated to be late. 

“COME ON! THE MOVIE STARTS IN LIKE TEN MINUTES!”

“Movie?” Heavy hurried steps came down the stairs as Kristoff struggled to pull a button-up plaid shirt across his broad shoulders. As soon as his eyes met his roommate’s dangerously narrowed icy blues, he swallowed the lump forming in his throat. “Oh shit…. That’s today…”

Elsa scowled. “I can’t believe it, Kris you did not-”

“Look Els I can explain, I met this crazy cute redhead and-”

“And now you’re bailing on our movie night for some ginger!” Elsa huffed, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

“Don’t be like this.” He walked up to her just as he patted away the wrinkles on his t-shirt. “She’s gonna be here any minute and I can’t just cancel now.”

“So you cancel on me instead.” She hissed, poking a finger in his chest. “May I remind you it was _you_ that made such a big deal that Infinity Wars was coming out. It was _you_ that made _me_ go out to buy tickets _in advance_ for us and your brother Sven, who might I add also bailed just this morning. And now you’re pretty much telling me to just go by myself to a movie I didn’t even care to see?”

“It sounds terrible when you put it like that.” Kristoff breathed, scratching the back of his head guiltily. “Can’t you just like, exchange them for a later date?”

Elsa opened her mouth to respond and Kristoff thanked whatever kind soul saved him, even if they did just seriously pull a ‘Shave and a Haircut’-style knock. The platinum blonde shook her head as she turned to open the door.

“Yes, who is i-” Elsa was never one to be at a lost for words, she was the captain of her high school debate team damnit, _and an English major_ , yet here she was babbling incoherently in her doorway, probably looking like a fish out of water.

“Oh, hi!” The girl that clearly robbed her of her sense rocked between her heels and toes showing off a bubbly demeanor and a smile matching the brilliance of a literal sun. A tinge of blush ran across freckled cheeks when her teal eyes looked over the blonde woman in front of her. “Oh, wow, you… hi! Wait, I said that, I mean, my name is Anna… not that you probably care. I must have the wrong room because I definitely wasn’t expecting you,” the girl laughed nervously. Suddenly her eyes widened. “Wait, no. That sounds bad, I just mean I… I’m looking for someone. Not like looking for someone as in to date! I’m supposed to be heading on a date with someone and I think I got the wrong room-”

“No, Anna, I’m right here.” Kristoff pulled the door open wider to finally reveal himself, chuckling to himself.

The redhead covered her face with her hands, the tinge in her cheeks spreading throughout her entire face now. “If you were here all this time, why’d you let me babble like an idiot for so long,” she whined.

“Because it was cute,” he teased with a shit-eating grin. “Anna, this is my roommate Elsa. I told you about her.”

“Oh.” She dared to peek through her fingers, embarrassment dying down as Anna slid her hands back to her side. It wasn't completely gone though, Elsa noted the light red still coloring her face. It was probably nothing compared to the heat she felt in her face though, especially considering she was still frozen in gasping fish mode, eyes focused on the girl’s thin, ruby painted lips. “Is… Were you coming with us?”

“NO!” Kristoff near shouted, startling both girls. He cleared his throat. “I mean, no, Elsa has other plans tonight, she wouldn’t want to come with us.”

That helped to fire up the gears in Elsa’s brain. Hell, it kicked them into overdrive. “I _had_ other plans, but then _someone_ cancelled on me.”

“That’s terrible,” the redhead gasped, completely missing the implication. “What were you going to do today?”

“Movies.” Was Elsa’s simple response, but when she saw the way those curious wide eyes stared at her, she was compelled - by some superior and clearly sadistic force - to explain. “I was supposed to go see Infinity Wars today,” she decided against throwing her longtime best friend under the bus despite the burning desire to see him suffer right now.

Elsa was taken aback when the girl squeaked excitedly, hands clapping together as she jumped up a few times, apparently unable to contain herself. “I love Marvel! Superheroes in general, really. But I’ve been _dying_ to see that movie since they dropped the trailer!”

“But, ice-cream... That’s what you said you wanted to do today.” The blonde man tried to recapture the conversation, dreading the direction it was speeding in.

“Yea because tickets were sold out like, _everywhere_! Trust me I checked! I can’t understand why anyone would give up a chance to see the movie right now!”

Elsa smirked up at Kristoff, who nervously tried the wipe the shame from his face. Of course, Anna missed the whole interaction. Elsa turned back toward Anna, hands already fishing around in the pocket of her faded black jeans, a devilish thought invading her head. “You know, I do have two spare tickets right now, I suppose I could use some company.”

“Shut up!” Anna squealed again. _Ear-splitting, but not totally unbearable,_ Elsa decided in her head as she looked up at her towering roommate with a small smile of victory while he returned a screwed up mug of his own. “Ohhh, Kristoff can we do this instead please, please, pretty please! We can still go for ice-cream after!” The fact that she rambled all of that off in one breath was the true feat here.

Kristoff groaned, but when he met with those puppy-dog eyes, he couldn’t refuse her no matter how badly he wanted to. Still, a nagging whisper scratched at the back of his head and he knew this was not going to end the way he was hoping.

“Fine..” he sighed in defeat, watching as the two girls exchanged a quick high five. He immediately regretted his decision.

>.>.<.<

Everyone walked out of the theatres with the same mix of excitement and dread hanging over their shoulders. Everyone, except for a certain fiery redhead who’s excitement was being complimented by a range of emotions, flitting between anger, despair, and well, more excitement.

Kristoff was obviously struggling to keep up with the girl’s thirty words per second spew, the panicked expression on his face showing that he was more than a little overwhelmed. Elsa on the other hand, watched Anna with attentive interest, nodding and even giving her own short input every now and again. This kept up with the trio standing just outside the exit doors for another five minutes before the shortest of the group announced that she had to pee and ran back into the theatre house.

Elsa watched until those twin braids and that sinfully bouncing skirt disappeared behind the tinted glass doors, and even then, her eyes lingered a little longer than was probably appropriate. 

“Dude, stop it.” Kristoff bumped his friend just hard enough to break her out of her reverie.

“I'm not sure if you noticed but I'm not doing anything.” Elsa grumbled. “Except worrying about the possibility of a bruised shoulder now.”

“You're doing that thing again!” He raised his voice pointing an accusatory finger at her. When Elsa quirked a brow at him he seemed to get even more flustered, arms flailing. “That adorable awkward lesbian thing! You're trying to steal her like last time with the brunette!”

“You mean Belle?” Elsa rolled her eyes. “I didn't ‘steal’ her. We bonded over a mutual love for Jane Austen.”

“And if I remember correctly, based on the sounds that were coming from your room, I’m guessing a mutual love of E.L. Ja-”

“Hey you don't talk about my thing and I don't talk about your thing for furries-”

“THAT HAPPENED ONE TIME!”

“You mean one time that you know I caught you.”

Kristoff’s lips sealed tight as a low growl of frustration rumbled from his throat. “Elsa, please, just let me take this girl for ice-cream _alone_. I found her first, it’s only fair.”

Elsa wanted to fight with him. Tear into him about how he should be the last to talk about fairness when he was about to abandon her in the plans he came up with to chase a skirt. Rebuke him for the way he talked about Anna like she was a dollar they both spotted on the ground. Rant about how this girl was making her heart do the most delightful somersaults in her chest, probably playing among the butterflies the redhead’s smile set in her stomach. Make him understand that while this was probably just a possible score to him, for her it felt… _special_?

She wanted to tell him how throughout the movie, as Anna’s hand would lightly brush against hers every time she reached over to steal popcorn from Elsa’s bag, it felt like fireworks lighting off every nerve in her body. How she was tempted to continue drinking her ginger ale even after the redhead mistook it for her coke and sipped it, just to have a sample of what those lips tasted like. How she memorized every freckle on her cheeks and every curve in her lips and burned every word that came out of that Anna’s mouth into the back of her brain like a gospel, but couldn’t remember a single hero from the movie. 

But ultimately, the only thing that fell from the platinum blonde’s lips was a defeated “okay”. He was her best friend after all. It wouldn’t be fair to him.

When Anna returned, she was met with a very deflated Elsa. For the first time all day, her demeanor dampened. “What happened?”

“Something urgent came up.” Kristoff was a little too happy to supply for Elsa’s liking. 

Still, she played along. “Yes, it seems I won’t be able to join you two for ice-cream.”

Anna looked between the two, an unreadable expression on her face. “Oh.. Well… it was… nice to meet you.” She took a few steps towards Elsa, arms opening wide. Elsa didn’t give in to the basic desire to give the girl what she was aiming for. Something they both seemed to want. Instead Elsa took a cautious step back and extended an arm, biting her lip to punish herself for even considering doing anything more. Anna was obviously taken aback by the other girl’s reaction to her, muttering a barely audible apology as she dropped her arm to meet the low shake.

It didn’t feel right.

>.>.<.<

The apartment seemed more haunted than anything. The only source of light flickered from the television as it watched over the blonde lump bundled beneath two layers of thick blankets. The only indication that the girl hadn't suffocated herself in her fortress was the subtle but steady rise and fall of the pile with every breath she took. 

Elsa regretted turning tail and heading home as soon as she arrived to the dark, empty apartment. Still, she had no choice but to obey her friend’s wishes. That’s what she told herself when she put a bag of popcorn in the microwave, a bag that remained untouched even hours later. She told herself that when she turned on the television without bothering to flick a light switch. She repeated it to herself when she went upstairs and dragged down the first blanket and then again when she went back for another one, desperate for a warmth she simply couldn't find at the moment. She instantly thought back to the redhead’s open arms.

Elsa had never known depression but she considered that they were currently getting acquainted as she found herself in the bathroom mirror, loosing her French braid for the first time in forever and watching her wild blonde locks cascade over her shoulders. She wasn't sure what she was expecting. Perhaps it was just for the sake of doing something, anything. But now that it was done she realized how utterly useless it was. She couldn't be bothered to redo it either.

Elsa wearily returned to the chair, taking a quick peep at the clock just as she passed the kitchen. She cursed under her breath. She promised she would break that habit fifteen minutes ago after she looked up at that clock for the hundredth time since she got home.

A quiet, barely there knock sounded at the door but Elsa made no moves to answer. Kristoff has a key, he can let himself in. She waited a few moments, but the door never opened. The knocking came again, this time a bit louder. Elsa growled.

_He must've forgotten his keys._

She stomped over to the door and instantly regretted the way she yanked it open when she heard the small squeak and saw the way the small girl managed to make herself seem even smaller.

“Anna,” Elsa swallowed the words she had for her oaf of a best friend.

“Elsa, I didn’t…” her thoughts seemed to trail off as she lowered her defenses. Her mouth opened but closed again when she decided against whatever words she was about to say. Her expression fell to a guilty frown. “I-is Kris home?”

Elsa’s eyes widened and Anna’s face fell more. “I thought you two were together. He hasn't come home yet… I think.” Elsa added that last part when she considered how out of it she really was. It wasn't unbelievable that he may have come in while she was smothered under blankets contemplating maybe turning the tv back on, if just for the background noise to drown out the utter emptiness filling up her insides. “You can come in if you’d like. I'll check upstairs to see if I may have just not noticed him come in.”

Anna cracked a small smile but there was no joy to it. “If he came home I doubt he would've been quiet.”

A blond brow quirked. “What happened? Should I be worried?”

Most people emit nervous energy. Their eyes shift, their feet tap, and they just can't stop moving. Anna was the opposite of that right now. The normally animated girl was completely still, as if she was afraid that even the slightest movement would betray her. Elsa wasn't sure why her hand gravitated towards the girl the way it did, or why she pulled Anna into a weak embrace, or even why she cradled the shorter girl’s head against her shoulder the way she did, but Anna didn’t push away so she didn’t bother herself with reasoning. _How is this girl warmer than two thick blankets?_

A small part of her was worried for her best friend, but Elsa felt guilty about how small that part really was.

“Are you okay?”

Elsa was surprised by the question. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?” Anna looked up at her worriedly. _Oh, the “emergency”._ “It’s fine, everything resolved itself.”

Anna released a stuttered breath, as if she had been holding it for hours. “I’m glad.” Silence impregnated the air around them before Anna finally decide to speak again. “I was really worried. I kept asking Kristoff what happened, and if you’d be okay. Even though he kept saying everything would be alright, I would ask again anyway.”

Elsa bit her lip. “I’m sorry for worrying you.” What else could she say? She hated herself for lying to the sweet little redhead. A corner of her brain was dedicated to cursing Kristoff for making her do something like that, but she knew it was unfair. “Is that why Kristoff left your date?”

Anna choked out a wet laugh. “I’m such an idiot. Kris is such a nice guy, and such a sweetheart really. And there I was, on a date with a nice guy, and I spend the whole time being a killjoy and asking about somebody else.”

“As that somebody else, I appreciate the concern.” Was that fair of her to say? Elsa started questioning her motives, but all that was silenced when Anna pulled away just enough to treat her to a warm smile. “Come on, let’s take a seat. Hopefully Kris will stop moping and get home soon so you can tell him how sorry you are. Maybe you two can plan another date.” Why did every word feel like it was raking at her heart.

Elsa flopped back in the chair, trying to play it as cool as she could and pretend like her insides weren’t screaming at her to somehow convince this gorgeous Anna to give her a chance. But she likes men. She likes Kristoff. _Your best friend._ Elsa shook out the thoughts as Anna tentatively took a seat next to her on the couch, raising a brow at the blanket pile. Elsa only responded with an awkward smile and a shrug, which brought out a soft giggle from Anna.

“Your hair looks nice like that by the way. Not that I didn’t like the french braid, that looked really good on you too. Just that it looks really nice when it’s out too.” Anna stopped herself and gave a shy smile. “Your hair is really pretty.”

Elsa didn’t respond. Couldn’t respond. All she could do was try her best not to be too obvious with the blushing.

More silence. Elsa hated the silence right now. There was nothing to distract her from staring at Anna’s face, reading into her strange expression like it was the best mystery novel she had ever dove into. What is she thinking? Is she sad? Maybe she’s beating herself up over what happened on the date? How could Kristoff be such a drama queen and walk out on this girl? How could he cause her so much grief right now?

“Elsa,” _Fuck, I got caught staring._ Elsa’s eyes shot down to her lap. Maybe it wasn’t too late to not look like a creep. “Promise you won’t judge me if I tell you this.”

“Well you haven’t said anything about my blanket fortress so I think I owe you at least that.” Elsa attempted to ease the tension, her efforts well received. Anna laughed.

She looked down at her lap. “I’m not attracted to Kristoff.”

Elsa eyes widened slightly. “Well, I mean it’s normal to not have feelings for someone so soon after meeting them. These things take time and-”

“No, like not attracted to him like at all.” Her hands moved up to start fiddling with her hair nervously. “He’s not really my type.”

“Then why did you agree to go on a date with him?”

Anna huffed and fell back into the chair, allowing herself to be half-consumed by the blankets next to her. “Because apparently my type is arrogant, chauvinistic, narcissistic assholes. And my ex was probably the worst of them all. After finally breaking up with that dick bag I figured if I wanted things to finally work out in my relationships I should aim for something… _different_. And Kristoff was different. He was sweet, and awkwardly charming, and I figured maybe he was the difference I needed in my life.”

“Oh.” Elsa mulled over the girl’s words, unsure of how to feel about the admission.

“It felt so natural to talk to him. And when he told me the stories of all the trouble he and his best friend Elsa got up to… I don’t know, I thought that could be really fun.”

Elsa chuckled. “Oh yeah, Kristoff did say he told you about me. I’m concerned to find out what he said though. Depending on which stories he told, I may not forgive him.”

Anna waved at her frantically. “Nothing bad or anything, though the way he talked about you, I pictured you being a lot... more…” she started making strange gestures with her hand that Elsa couldn’t decipher for the life of her.

“R-round?” Elsa guessed when Anna started making circles around her arms.

“Manly.” Anna finally settled on. “I thought you’d look like Kristoff, but with a vagina and breasts.”

Elsa actually snorted this time when she laughed. _Smooth._ “Sorry to disappoint.”

“Nothing about you is disappointing,” Anna shot up so quickly it actually shocked Elsa, almost more so than her words. Almost. But nothing compared to the shock of what happened next.

It took Elsa all of ten seconds to catch up to what was happening. To understand the soft tug she felt on her lips. In fact, it wasn’t until those soft, ruby red lips pulled away from her, did her brain start to process everything. Elsa’s eyebrows were lost somewhere in her hairline and her eyes were wider than when she downed three cups of redbull and coffee.

“You… like women?” Okay, so maybe Elsa’s brain hadn’t totally caught up yet.

Anna’s shoulders were up to her ears and her face was almost as red as her hair. “I… I like you. A lot. I don’t know! I’ve never clicked with anyone the way I did with you and…” Anna looked like she was struggling to find the right words. “And I don’t know... maybe _you’re_ the different I need.”

Elsa looked left and right, and then her eyes shot to the door as if she was expecting it to swing open any moment now. “...Kristoff?”

“I don’t want to hurt him again the way I did today.” Anna’s eyes fell again.

Elsa sat there quietly, watching Anna. “He really likes you…”

“I know.” Anna bit her lip, and Elsa could swear she saw a glistening in her eyes. “But I really like you..”

“He’s my best friend Anna.” Elsa stood. “This can’t happen. I _can’t_ do that to him.”

Anna’s head dropped. She slowly slid to her feet. “Right, I understand. I wouldn’t want to cause any trouble between you two.” Her head snapped up and she plastered on a robotic smile, her lips twitching ever so slightly. “I should probably go. Tell Kris to give me a call when he gets back and that I’m really sorry… about everything.”

The redhead didn’t give Elsa a chance to respond before she bee-lined for the door. Her eyes were glued to her feet as she shuffled away. When she pulled at the door to leave, she barely saved herself from running into it when she felt a weight push it back shut.

“Anna wait,” Elsa sighed. She fidgeted and played with anything her hands could reach on her person, already losing the confidence that propelled her to the door in the first place. Why did she stop her again? “We can still... talk. I can give you my number and we can talk. As friends.”

Anna looked at her, face suddenly so full of confusion and wonder. Elsa knew this was a bad idea. Oh, how weak she must have looked right now. Friends? Does she even have any of those outside of Kristoff? Can she even manage to be friends with this girl?

Anna smiled timidly. “I’d like that.”

Elsa wasn’t sure if she could manage a friendship with this girl, but she was sure as hell going to try.


	2. Jealous

“You fucking betrayed me!”

Elsa returned Kristoff’s glare with a wicked smile. “All’s fair in love and war my friend.”

The atmosphere between the two was intense and Anna wasn't sure what to do. She looked between them, trying to figure out some way to diffuse the situation she found herself caught in the middle of. “Kris, if there’s any way I ca-”

“You’re just as much to blame for this as Elsa!” Kristoff snarled, never breaking eye contact with his unapologetic best friend.

“You brought this on yourself.” The blonde rolled her eyes, completely unmoved by Kristoff’s outbursts. “Crying about it isn't gonna change what happened.”

Kristoff sat up straight, brows furrowed and lips pulled into a tight frown. “We had a deal. We talked about this.”

“Things changed,” she shrugged.

“I see how it is,” he looked between the two with a shake of his head.

Anna swallowed at the way the man looked at her. She had never seen that sort of expression on his face. Was he really _that_ upset over all this? She stumbled as she reached for her cup that sat on the table between the three. It wasn't until she saw the way her fingers trembled against the glass that she realized how nerve-wracking all of this was to her. 

So much so that she was surprised when her lips were only met with the sting of ice knocking against them. When did she drain her glass? She looked at the cubes of ice in disappointment, and as if to grant her silent wish, a stream of fruit punch flowed neatly into her glass with barely a splash.

Looking over shoulder, she smiled at the brunette holding a half full pitcher of punch and wearing a knowing smile of her own. “You’re a lifesaver Belle.” Anna breathed contently as she hummed happily into the glass of fruity drink, the light mix of alcohol doing wonders for her nerves. 

Belle laughed as she slid onto the couch next to Anna, resting the pitcher on the table after fixing herself up with a refill of her own. “Now you understand why I chose not to play.”

“Seriously!” Anna agreed with a nervous laugh, looking down at the colorful cards in her hand. “I've never seen anyone get so intense over Uno. I mean, Monopoly sure! That game is a friendship killer designed by demons! But UNO!”

“They're like this with everything,” the brunette huffed as she picked up the small book she left on the table. “Separated, they're sweethearts. Together, well they’re a couple of asses really. Competition just makes it more obvious.”

“I resent that!” Kristoff announced, finally taking the chance to pull away from his glaring match with Elsa. “No books allowed on game night.”

“I told Elsa I was bringing one. She said ‘fine’. Take it up with your roommate.” Belle never even bothered to look at him as she spoke matter-of-factly, nose buried in her small pocket sized book.

“Elsa! The rules of game night are absolute!”

Elsa threw her hands up, careful not to accidentally flash her cards. “You said it was cool to invite Belle and you know she never leaves home without one.”

Kristoff grumbled something under his breath. “Only because you let me invite Anna.” He looked up at the redhead, a big goofy smile playing across his face just as she put her glass back down. “Even though she’s helping you kick my ass.”

She clears her throat, caught off guard to suddenly be pulled back into the conversation. “I’m just glad I was invited.”

“I'm glad you accepted my invitation,” he rubbed the back of his head with a grin.

“You still have three more cards to draw lover boy, don't think I missed that.” Elsa patted the table next to the deck, a small smile betraying her.

It was hard for her to shake off the kiss from Anna four nights ago. When Kristoff finally got home about an hour after, he met Elsa waiting patiently for him on the couch in a dark living room, back straight and face determined. He wasn’t drunk, much to Elsa’s relief, even though his breath did carry the light lingering stench of cheap beer. This would make the conversation easier at least.

He plopped onto the couch, releasing the biggest sigh Elsa had probably ever heard from her friend. She noticed the droop in his eyes, even if he was avoiding eye contact with her. Instead he focused on the black television screen, hands clutched on his lap and shoulders slumped. Elsa felt a pang of guilt in her heart. Having been friends since childhood, they had weathered countless highs and lows together. They always had each other’s back throughout the years. Whether it was when Kristoff broke his leg playing football, or when Elsa’s parents divorced just before her exams in her junior year, they always saw each other through their darkest moments. They just always had that sort of friendship.

And thinking about that just killed Elsa more inside. They fought a lot, and got on each other’s nerves constantly. Hell, they’ve charmed girls away from each other so often it was almost a game to them. They kept count! But this is the first time she’s done something that felt like pure _betrayal_. 

Feelings… complicate things. And she was scared that that may have been feelings she was seeing on Kristoff’s face. Feelings that she knew better than she wanted to admit. Feelings that needed to be buried, for Kristoff’s sake. She had to be there for him.

Elsa wrapped an arm around the sullen man’s shoulder, her thoughts driving her actions. She knew she had to make things right.

“Anna’s a sweet girl, of course she would be worried about you,” he reasoned just loud enough for Elsa to barely hear. “And I was being too much of a douche to realize that that’s a _good thing_. I mean, I can’t date a girl that doesn’t care about my bestie as much as I do.” Kristoff gave an uncertain smile, his eyes screaming out his unspoken apology.

Elsa chuckled despite herself. She wasn’t sure why that simple gesture was so hard. “You’re always a douche,” she punched his shoulder with the arm not preoccupied with administering care just hard enough for him to feel it. “But it would be unforgivably douchey of you to not call Anna right now. I expect to hear a heartfelt apology and promises to make it up to her; promises I’m going to make sure you keep.”

Kristoff rolled his eyes, the grin on his face doubling in size. “Yes mom, anything else?” He was already unpocketing his cell phone and scrolling for the number.

Elsa’s smile almost matched his when she heard the phone ringing as he pulled it to his ear. “Well now that you mention it, I’ve been meaning to tell you about maybe dressing sharper on your dates. You dress like a lumberjack or a mountain man or something.”

“We can’t all be pretty.” He smirked just as the other voice came over the phone.

Anna answered hesitantly, and when she heard Kristoff’s soft “hey”, she immediately began apologizing, speaking faster than his brain could comprehend. When he finally got her to calm down, mostly with Elsa’s coaching in the background, they were able to talk things out and another date was even in the making. Details weren’t solidified for another two days when Kristoff had the brilliant idea to invite Anna to their game night. Elsa was… less than enthused.

She wasn’t sure if she could handle being in the same room as the girl again yet. Sure they had texted superficially over the past few days, nothing more than greetings and “how are you”s followed by the generic “I’m fine”s. But to see her, Elsa’s heart picked up at the thought of it and she cursed herself for her lack of discipline. 

Still, despite her apprehension, Elsa gave him the thumbs up. Of course she was fine with it. She had to be. For him. For them. With that, plans were made and Anna was due to visit that Saturday night. Glorious.

And that very same night, as Elsa sat up staring at the ceiling, trying to calm her still throbbing heart, she was blessed with a jolt of brilliance of her own. A jolt that came in the form of a text from a certain brunette she admittedly had quite an interest in. One that was completely eclipsed by her feelings for the sun that is Anna, but it was… workable at best. And there would be alcohol. That should help.

And so that was how Elsa found herself beating on Kristoff’s bedroom door at three o’clock in the morning to ask if she could invite Belle and make it an even four. And of course, a groggy miffed off Kristoff was more than willing to agree if that meant he could enjoy the other half of his eight hours _in peace_.

“One more card Kris, I’m watching you like a hawk.” Elsa teased, his mouth dropping open.

“No way, I totally drew eight! Look at all these cards!” His eyes narrowed. “Besides, you weren’t supposed to use any draw four cards on me, we had a deal before the game even started.”

“We agreed that it would be house versus visitors _before_ Belle announced she wasn’t playing. And to beat up on poor Anna would just be cruel.” Elsa looked up at the girl unwittingly. A mistake. It was only the second time Elsa made eye contact with the redhead since Kristoff picked her up. The other time was when she actually opened the door for them. That was also when she downed her first glass of the spiked fruit punch and she decided that it wasn’t strong enough. “Besides, Anna hit me with a draw four and I’m one card away from an uno. I’ll cheer for you from the sidelines though.” She forced a smile as she pulled her focus back to her cards and away from beautiful teal. 

She didn’t notice the way the already barely there smile on Anna’s face fell even more. Anna tried to mask her hurt feelings behind the glass of punch, only to be bugged with the sting of ice again. Anna knew this reunion wouldn’t be easy, but right now it was downright painful.

…

Board games, chips, and pretzels alone make for a dull game night. But once you throw a few mandatory drinking games in the mix with four college aged young adults, you get the exact scene that was playing out right now. 

The first game, Belle’s suggestion, claimed the first victim for the night: “Drink while you think”. Anna barely got one answer out before the second can of beer had her head swimming so strong, she actually rolled off the couch when she reached over for the next one. She was mercifully excused. Elsa took it upon herself to suggest that Kristoff grab her a blanket to lay on and rest. Instead of vacating the couch, as Elsa assumed would go without saying, Kristoff laid the girl back on the floor, at least decent enough to bring a pillow. Kristoff polished off about four cans himself but barely seemed bothered. Belle and Elsa mutually barely touched their first cans.

A couple rounds of poker followed although after Kristoff finished another glass of rum punch and started demanding that they play strip poker and considering that he was pretty much the only one winning, both Elsa and Belle threw down their cards and left him to fume alone. Elsa couldn’t stop herself from looking down in concern at the still resting redhead. And ripping her eyes away from the girl was proving to be just as difficult.

What did eventually steal her attention from Anna was the soft peck pressed on her turned neck. Elsa’s neck snapped back so quickly she thought she may had cracked it. Belle was looking up at her and Elsa wondered when they reached the fridge. 

“Distracted?” Belle used a tone that made shivers shoot down Elsa’s spine. She had only ever heard that tone once before, and about an hour later it was calling her name between the cracks of a leather whip.

Elsa cleared her throat, trying to pull her mind back from that memory. “Umm, a little.”

“Why’d you really invite me?” Belle placed a hand on Elsa’s bicep, eyes half-lidded and a smile that read of deeper intentions. A tongue swiped out across her lips, leaving a glistening sheen over the bright pink lips. “We both know it wasn't just to play cards.”

Elsa’s nerves trembled at the feeling of familiar fingers ghosting down her arm. Yes, this was exactly what she was hoping for. That her body would react to Belle the way it always had. Physical attraction may not have been much compared to what she felt for a certain redhead, but with the liquor pumping through her veins, it was enough to at least keep her mind out of dangerous territory.

Finger tips played across the creamy skin of Elsa’s neck, reaching up into a mess of platinum blonde. Elsa’s breathing shallowed. Her arms reached out for a familiar slender waist, wrapping themselves around the brunette and pulling her in. The space between them closed in a heartbeat, Elsa looking down into Belle’s eyes with a predatory smirk, one that Belle returned easily, if not haughtily. The darkness forming in their eyes was unmistakable.

A few quiet moments passed with them paused like this, as if they were locked in a mental battle, daring the other to make the first move. Elsa was the first to break. “Would you be disappointed if I said it was just for cards?”

“I would be.” Belle replied smoothly, as if this was simply a rehearsal between them. “And we both know how much you hate to disappoint.”

Elsa allowed a chuckle. This was a game for them really. They both pretty much knew how this conversation would go. She guided Belle by her waist, hands slipping under the thin white blouse and petting at heated flesh. With a grunt, she lifted the woman just onto the edge of the kitchen counter, a hand reaching up quickly to tug at brunette locks, roughly pulling her head to a tilt. “Well I better fix that then.” 

Lips crashed together in a bruising kiss. Elsa’s hands pawed and toyed along the hot skin under the brunette’s shirt. Belle’s hands lost themselves in messy blonde tresses. There were no more theatrics between them, both girls shedding the inconvenience of pre-game pleasantries. Witty banter devolved into hot panting and low moaning. Eyes screwed shut as Elsa’s lips began to stray down an inviting neck line.

Elsa smirked at the rumble against her tongue, a throaty moan filling her ears. She drew her head up to marvel at her work. Shallow breaths. Flushed skin. Dazed teals.

_No, what? Hazel._

Elsa cursed under her breath, dragging her nails across the girl’s back, soliciting another moan. Belle’s hands dove down to the edge of the counter as she anchored herself, legs pulling Elsa in like a snake wrangling its all too willing prey. She met Elsa’s darkened gaze with a mischievous grin.

“That was…. passionate,” Belle began with a slickness, her words slow and calculated and her knowing smile accenting the features of her freckled face - _Fuck Elsa no, Belle does **not** have freckles_. “I can only imagine how good it would be if you were actually here and not off in space somewhere.”

Elsa’s mouth hung open as Belle loosened the grip her legs had around the blonde. “I… I wasn’t…” Elsa struggled to hammer out a denial. She was disgusted with herself to say the least. She invited Belle over - this was precisely _why_ she invited Belle over - and yet all she could think about was... 

Elsa growled in frustration as she pounded a fist against the counter, avoiding Belle’s steady gaze. “I can’t lie to you.” More like it was futile to lie to Belle, and Elsa knew that from experience.

A gentle hand reeled Elsa’s face back in. “You know I don’t care if you’re trying to use me to forget something _or someone-_ ” Belle flashed a brilliant smile as Elsa groaned guiltily. “-but, Elsa Arendelle, next time you will tell me _beforehand_ , instead of insulting my intelligence.”

“I’m sorry.” Elsa apologized immediately.

The brunette slid herself off the counter, Elsa stepping back to give her room as she stood to her feet, smoothing the wrinkles in the hems of her blouse. “Well, now that _that_ mood is dead-”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine Elsa.” And with her soft reassuring smile, that was actually believable. “But now,  
you’re going to have to find a new way to entertain me.” Belle winked.

…

There’s a moment between wake and sleep where consciousness begins to slowly seep its way back into your mind. A moment where despite being otherwise blissfully unaware, our senses begin to take in their surroundings once more. It was in this exact moment, that the worst odor to ever assault Anna’s nose wafted past her nostrils.

“Ughhh!” Anna’s voice was somewhere between a high pitched yelp and a zombie-like groan. Once the stench finally tickled her brain she shot up, blankets falling off her body and hair sticking to drool all over her face and cheeks. How her hair always managed to loose itself from its braids were one thing, but the absolute bird’s nest lion’s mane thing it did was far beyond what can rightfully be called bed head.

Her head snapped to the right where she was finally able to make out her assailant, a flat almost pear shaped foot with the odor of the unwashed backside of a reindeer. The foot hung off the edge of the sofa, dangling just above her sleeping form. Anna’s first instinct was to slap the offensive limb away, but when the thoughts of what could have led to that kind of stink and how that could accidentally stick to her, she decided it was probably better to leave it be.

The redhead scrambled to her feet, stretching with a satisfactory pop of her back as her nose drew in another scent. One that drew her into the kitchen with a hum. Anna almost jumped for joy when she finally found the source.

_Chocolate! Hot chocolate!_

A steaming pot of hot chocolate sat on the counter, a small note with the most elegant handwriting she had ever seen stuck to the glass with a small bite of tape. Of course, the chocolate captured her attention far stronger than the little piece of paper.

Pouring out a cup of steaming hot comfort, Anna smiled as she inhaled the aroma like a drug. Allowing the liquid to caress her tongue, Anna looked up at the clock, finally taking in the nuances of a new morning. She heard the bear-like snoring before she saw Kristoff knocked out on the couch. 

_But where’s Elsa…_

Anna hummed over the thought as she took in another mouthful of hot chocolate. Suddenly, her bright eyes went dull and her brows furrowed against the mug. The events of last night washed over her, bringing with them a renewed feeling of depression. She knew things between her and Elsa would be awkward, that much she was prepared for. But Elsa had practically tried to ignore Anna’s existence. _Not that I blame her though…_

Her eyes wandered back over to the note and she finally took the time to find out what it said.

_“Elsa, consider this your reward for last night, it was very entertaining! Hope we can do it again -Belle”_

_There’s even a winking face!_

Anna growled as she slammed the mug onto the counter, spilling what little remained to the bottom. It took a few seconds before the implications of her reaction started to sink in with Anna and she grimaced.

_Jealous? I should not be jealous… Elsa could’ve told me she had a girlfriend though…_

Her eyes blinked back over to the pot. Would the brew be missed if she poured it down the sink right now?

Before Anna could make good on the thought however, she heard a door open and slow heavy footsteps made their way down the stairs. The blonde announced her presence with a yawn as she reached the bottom of the staircase. A sharp inhale and Elsa was drawn to the kitchen just the same as the victim before her. Once she rounded the corner however, Elsa stopped dead in her tracks, eyes taking in the girl that had been haunting her subconscious from even before she started dreaming. 

“Anna,” she finally breathed, realizing how weird she must have looked staring bug eyed at the redhead. “Did you…” _Did you have fun last night? Did you sleep well? Did you dream of me?_ “Hot chocolate?” Forget a mental slap, Elsa mentally rammed her head into the wall. She could’ve at least formed a half decent sentence! _Did you hot chocolate!? What the fucking hell brain!? I’m seriously starting to question the integrity of my own English scores!_

“Belle made it.” Anna finally answered, voice quiet. “She spent the night?”

“Hm, yeah.” It was clear Elsa’s mind was somewhere else entirely, though Anna’s assumption of where exactly that was may not have been entirely accurate. When the blonde reached over for the pot, Anna was still tempted to dump it in the sink. Sometimes perpetual clumsiness had its perks. “I’m guessing I just missed her then?”

Anna shrugged, eying the mug that Elsa was filling with more disdain than any dish deserved. “I just got up a minute ago and she wasn’t here, just the note.” She handed Elsa the piece of paper and gauged the other girl’s reaction… or in this case, lack thereof, as Elsa acknowledged the words without so much as a shrug. “I guess I should get going now.”

Elsa’s eyes widened at that and she hissed when the scolding hot liquid made unwelcomed contact with her lips. She watched in shock as Anna walked out to the living area grabbing up the pillow and blankets and looking around as if trying to find the right place to put them. She followed the girl. “I understand if you have to leave now but shouldn’t you let Kristoff take you?”

The sound of oafish snoring reminded her how impossible that would be right now. “I’ll be fine. I can catch the bus.” Anna dismissed Elsa’s suggestion. She felt like it was better this way anyway. Maybe she expected things to go horribly today, but what she uncovered… Anna needed time to process.

“I’ll take you then.”

Elsa’s offer came as a surprise to both of them and they both stared at each other wearing that surprise on their faces. But before Elsa could back out of it, she forced herself to grab her car keys off the rack near the staircase, returning to the living area with eyes determined and mouth pinned uneasily. There were so many different ways of rejecting this offer that came to Anna’s head but when she allowed herself to dive into the seriousness in those icy blues, she weakly nodded.

The walk to the car was quiet, as was most of the ride save for the pop music that played from the radio of Elsa’s silver Prius. Neither of them liked this station, but both decided it was better than accidentally starting a conversation. Instead, they would stick to suffering through the assault on their ears, the only relief being the brief moments Anna had to take to give occasional directions.

That is, until a particularly dreadful bit of popular pop trash rang through the speakers and Anna dove to cut the radio before the second line of the awfully repetitive song could make it out. And unfortunately, the moment they were both dreading came to past. Anna, being the one to break the short lived quiet, finally asked what had been on her mind the whole ride.

“So, Kristoff slept on the couch. And I kinda blacked out on the floor. You were in your room. Where’d Belle sleep?”

“In my room.” Anna didn’t like the way Elsa made it sound like that was so obvious and normal. And it probably showed, because Elsa stuttered to amend her words as soon as she looked over at Anna’s face. Before she could come up with anything though, Anna had already cut her off.

“Take this right coming up.” Elsa did as she was told, responsibly signalling despite the empty road around them, however the pause from Anna was making her more uncomfortable than she allowed herself to show. “I didn’t know you two were dating.”

The fact that she didn’t swerve her car off the road was a testament in an of itself. “Me and - No! Belle and I aren’t dating.” Elsa tried her best to sound as disgusted at the prospect as she could manage, trying to hide the fact that at some point she had actually considered it for a bit longer than a few seconds. Of course, that was _long_ before she met Anna. “And we never were,” she added for good measure.

Anna raised an eyebrow, thoroughly unconvinced. “You shared a bed.” She wasn’t sure how true that was, but Elsa’s lack of denial was as good an answer as any.

“We have a history.” Elsa finally admitted, and she nearly cried when she watched Anna’s face fall even more than it already had. Still, she had to explain this or she knew she’d regret it. “She and I… we’ve had... sex…” She knew she had to do it, but that didn’t make it easy. She wasn’t even sure why she felt like she had to do it but Elsa chose not to question it. “We’ve had sex a few times, but we never dated. Honestly, we talked about it once. But we realized that neither of us has _those kinds_ of feelings for the other so...” Elsa stopped herself from spewing anymore, pulling up to the home the redhead pointed out silently and pulling the car in park.

“I see..” While Anna seemed convinced, Elsa wasn’t too sure she was happy with the face the normally bubbly girl was making. She wasn’t even entirely sure what that face even meant. “So last night… you two…”

“No, we didn’t.” It was probably best to leave out that it wasn’t by her own choice. “After Kristoff passed out on the couch, I stole his TV and game set from his room and she and I played Smash Bros up in my room. It was apparently the only game she was comfortable playing..” Elsa grumbled out the last part, remembering her losing streak more vividly than she would like. “At least she was entertained kicking my ass.”

Anna giggled a bit at the exasperation in Elsa’s voice. She surprised herself, honestly. Maybe she was just willing to grasp onto any reasonable explanation that didn’t involve Belle laying nude in Elsa’s bed while the blonde peppered soft kisses along her perfect unblemished skin and her hands reach down and press against her-

“Will your folks be mad? Do you want me to walk you to your door and apologize?” Elsa asked, remembering Kristoff mentioning that an only recently turned nineteen Anna was living at home with her father. _Kris was… quite nervous about meeting the military man. He was so relieved to find out her father would be at work when he came to pick her up._

“It’s fine.” Anna blushed over, finally realizing where her thoughts were just heading. “I don’t know if my dad’s home yet, but it’ll be fine.”

“I’ll do it anyway. It’s our fault really and I don’t want you to get in trouble for that.” Elsa opened her car door first, already rounding the small vehicle to open Anna’s door for her. The redhead accepted the chivalry without a sound, internally praying that her father really _wasn’t_ home to see this.

She shuffled up the walkway, Elsa barely a step behind her. When they reached the porch, Anna sighed out a puff of relief. “The porch light is still on, he hasn’t been home yet.” 

She turned to face Elsa, not even sure when the smile returned to her face. She barely avoided flinching when the girl’s hand reached out and patted down her hair, no doubt trying to smooth down the mess of bedhead Anna had forgotten about until now.

Anna reached up and pulled down as much hair as she could with her hands, reddening at the way Elsa’s free hand moved up to her mouth to disguise the amusement in her face. A terrible disguise. “I’m sorry, I have terrible bedhead.” Anna wasn’t even sure why she was apologizing.

“It’s cute.”

Anna stared at her incredulously. Her morning hair has been described as many things. ‘Cute’ was never one of them. Soon the open-mouth gaze was replaced with a pout as Elsa was overtaken by the laughter she was trying to hide. She barely took a breath to protest before her mouth slammed shut at the feeling of warm lips pressing against her forehead.

Perhaps it was meant to be an unspoken apology, but the fire it awoke in both their bellies wasn’t about to let them leave it at that. It was the fire that drove Anna to the tips of her toes, and pulled her lids shut. The same fire that drew Elsa’s lids shut as well, forcing her arms to wrap themselves around the shorter girl’s waist and pull her closer. The fire that made their lips come together, only to part within a few moments to allow eager tongues to meet.

They shouldn’t be doing this. Elsa worked hard for this to not happen. Anna tried her best to not let this happen. And yet there they were. Elsa’s hands moved lower to rest on the curve of the redhead’s hips. Anna’s hands wrapped themselves around Elsa’s neck, pulling the blonde so close they were practically one form on the patio on that early morning.

As Elsa’s heart jumped at the moan that reverberated through her, not entirely sure whether it was hers or Anna’s, a small part of her brain registered the severity of what was happening right now. 

But, that part was unfortunately too small to matter to her right now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, I have this mostly finished so I decided to start posting the chapters now. I'm debating a schedule for chapter updates but the next chapter will be up in a week the latest. Happy holidays all, enjoy the season!


	3. That Line

“How do I look?”

“Actually, you don’t look half bad.” Elsa commented thoughtfully as her friend smugly gave a spin. “And you said you weren’t pretty,” she cooed teasingly, messing up his hair. A shame considering it was probably the first time in years Kristoff got himself acquainted with a comb.

“Pretty? No. But I would accept ruggedly handsome,” he spoke with a smirk, adjusting his tie under the the gray vest.

Elsa swatted his hands away and straightened the tie for him, taking a step back to admire her work. Despite Kristoff’s arrogance on the issue, it was Elsa that picked out his clothes for tonight, practically dragging him to the checkout counter to purchase his first set of dressy clothes. The only suit the blonde lug owned was the one he called his ‘funeral suit’, and he wore that drab thing to any and every occasion that called for something a little more fancy than t-shirts or flannel. He was _not_ allowed to wear that thing on his date with Anna tonight, not if Elsa could help it.

Kristoff already botched step one of the date, remembering that you actually _have a date_. He overslept, and if Elsa didn’t beat a dent into his bedroom door, she was sure he would still be sleeping.

But thankfully, he had a dutiful best friend in Elsa, and she would see to it that his date was perfect. So for that reason, Elsa took it upon herself to pick up Anna while he got ready. For that reason, and that reason only. It had nothing to do with the fact that she was finally beginning to admit to herself that she was drawn to Anna the way flies are mesmerized by the dangerous light of a fly zapper. It certainly wasn’t to see the strawberry blonde in whatever gorgeous stylish dress she certainly picked out for her date tonight. 

Her date with Kristoff. Elsa’s best friend. And not Elsa.

Elsa leaned in to the doorbell, her stomach tugging as she had horrible flashbacks to her very first date. Only thing is, she was a lot better dressed back then. Elsa grimaced at the food stains all over what used to be a plain white t-shirt and poked a finger into a hole in the thigh of her old worn sweats. She could've at least painted her toes if she was going to wear flip-flops.

The tumble at the doorknob made Elsa snap straight to attention. Suddenly, her heart sunk. What if Anna’s father is home? What if he answers the door? He’d definitely want to know who his daughter is getting dressed up for. Elsa fiddled with her messy braid, hastily put together three days ago and hadn't seen any fixing since. She was definitely not presentable enough to meet Anna’s father.

_Wait, this isn't my date._

Elsa took in a deep breath as the door cracked open but lost it as soon as flowing deep purple invaded her vision. The plum dress fit her almost too well and Elsa couldn't help but feel like it was designed to tease her. Its off-the-shoulder design put her freckle dusted collar on full display. Dress straps hung around toned arms. The full length garment hugged _every single_ curve Anna had to offer, minus the knee length slit that showed off a shapely calf.

Anna’s expression was shy, and Elsa found herself wondering if that was make up dusted across her cheeks or if that was her natural blush. It was hard to tell. The only obvious signs of makeup were the thin bright red lipstick and the small bit of eyeliner drawing attention to an already gorgeous pair of eyes. Anna pulled a fistful of her red hair over her shoulder, free from its usual braids, playing and twirling it under Elsa’s scrutinizing gaze.

“I must either look really good or really horrible,” Anna finally laughed uneasily. 

“You look perfect.” Even Elsa was surprised at how easily that came out, but the sparkle it brought to those beautiful teals made Elsa feel like she just won an Olympic medal. For once in her life, she felt like she was doing something right.

Anna moved to close the space between them, perfectly coiffed and painted nails running along the tattered mess of an old t-shirt. They ran up her spine and dragged lightly across her neck, playing in the loose strands of blonde along the back of her head before pressing down on the base of her skull. Elsa didn't bother resisting.

They had shared so many secret kisses since the morning after game night, Elsa had lost count. Not all of them were as chaste as this one either. Once or twice hands may have gotten a little too curious on the sofa. And Anna may have ended up on Elsa’s lap one night after a car ride home. But they never crossed the line. _That_ line.

Their resistance to each other was still painfully low though.

They broke away from the kiss before things could get any deeper but they didn't do anything about the lack of distance between them. Anna’s hand came down to rest over Elsa’s racing heart and she smiled up at her.

“Kristoff’s a really lucky guy. Seriously, you look stunning.”

“So do you.”

It was Elsa’s turn to pink. “In these dingy old clothes? I don't think so.”

“You always look amazing Els. In anything.”

Their lips came together for another kiss, this time allowing their tongues to play together like star crossed lovers. It was a cold passion shared between them, devoid of any urgency. When they finally came apart again Elsa reached up and grabbed Anna’s hand, entangling their fingers in front of her.

They enjoyed the quiet. The fragile peace. They could feel guilty about it later.

“I really should take you over to Kristoff now. He’s probably almost ready.”

“Right.”

They walked hand-in-hand down the walkway towards the curb where Elsa’s silver chariot awaited them. They broke apart only when necessary, Elsa opening Anna’s car door for her and helping her slide in without snagging her dress.

The drive back to the apartment was comfortably silent, Anna’s hand occasionally falling to Elsa’s thigh to give it a light squeeze or Elsa’s eyes momentarily flashing away from the road as she took time to admire the woman in her passenger’s seat.

Once they got back to the room, Elsa invited Anna to make herself comfortable while she checked on Kristoff’s progress. Anna giggled when Elsa mentioned that she hoped he remembered to at least take a shower and promised that she’d scrub him herself if he didn’t.

When she went upstairs Kristoff was just walking out of the shower. He was shocked that Elsa was back so soon and she was shocked that he neglected to wear a towel.

“Jesus fucking Christ Kris! Cover yourself, Anna is right downstairs and she looks amazing and you need to look just as amazing if you’re going to be seen with her on your arm!” She scolded him all in one breath as she cowed him into his room to make sure he didn’t waste anymore time. Anyone else would have probably been put off in the face of their nude male best friend, but the two were so close they were practically twins. Kristoff’s nakedness was something Elsa got used to from even before they hit high school.

Elsa sat cross-legged on his bed as he got himself ready, helping out whenever she could, whether it was to locate a lost sock or help him to tie his first ever non-clip-on tie.

Now, she admired her work. Even Kristoff could clean up with the right guidance. Anna only deserved the best after all, and she would make sure the redhead got just that. Even if it wasn’t her.

“Now I just have to find my shoes.” Kristoff announced as he headed towards the closet. Elsa huffed. Anna had been waiting downstairs for the past twenty minutes for a date that should have started half an hour ago.

While he dug through a pile of discarded clothes and old boots, Elsa decided that to leave Anna downstairs by herself any longer would be torture. Torture for whom is yet to be determined.

“I’m going to make sure Anna doesn’t walk out on your ass while you find your glass slippers Cinderella,” she announced, earning a grumble and a ‘whatever’ from her friend.

She had to stop herself from running downstairs to Anna. Just thinking of how beautiful she looked got Elsa excited all over again. She met the girl sitting on the sofa, struggling to put in an earring, its twin already hanging in the other ear. They were short drop earrings, a simple diamond sitting in the center of sterling hoops.

“Want some help?”

“Please,” Anna whined. Somewhere along the line she managed to get her fingers stuck in her hair.

Elsa chuckled but she immediately got to work untangling the hair from the jewelry, trying to minimize the amount of tugging as best she could. “Kristoff should be down soon. The restaurant he’s taking you to specializes in Italian food but for God's sake, don't let Kris order spaghetti. He doesn't understand how utterly _un_ romantic that is.”

Anna scoffed. “Have you never seen Lady and the Tramp,” she teased with a playful grin.

“Have you never seen Kristoff eat spaghetti,” Elsa returned her grin.

“Noted.” Anna hummed with a smile. It didn't last long though. “Are you and Belle hanging out today too?”

Anna hasn't exactly been subtle about her discomfort with Belle and Elsa hanging out as much as they have lately. Even if she’s had Elsa’s undivided attention throughout the nights as they talked over the phone until one of them inevitably passed out, Anna couldn't help but be jealous whenever she heard Belle would be coming over through the day. Elsa was hard pressed to admit that she didn't find it at least a little flattering. And while she didn’t like stoking the flames of Anna’s jealousy, she needed something to keep her mind off of the redhead while she went on dates with Kristoff, her rightful suitor. Belle has been… rather good at that. 

Nothing sexual, of course. They just have a number of similar interests neither of them bothered exploring together during their time of sexcapades. It was sort of refreshing to be able to spend time with someone else that shared in her pastimes. Though the only difference between Belle and Kristoff when it came to video games was that it was cuter when Belle got into it and… that Belle doesn’t hold back when it comes to shoving.

“Yes, she should be over in a few minutes. We'll just chill out here, probably break out the Call of Duty. She’s been getting really into it and she’s a natural.” It sounded a bit like praise, but none of them commented further.

“I hope you two have fun.” Anna mumbled half-heartedly. Elsa had to force herself not to pull the girl into a reassuring hug. The sound of footsteps coming downstairs reminded her why that wasn’t such a good idea.

Anna hopped to her feet, surprisingly graceful for a clutz in heels. Even if they were barely two inches high. She waited until Kristoff came down the stairs, still messing with his vest and tie before he finally looked up and was instantly star-struck.

“Wow, Anna you look amazing!” Kristoff sounded as surprised as he looked. “I kinda feel like I’m going to prom now,” he chuckled nervously as he finally got his legs to move and continue towards the two girls waiting on him.

“Don’t stay out too late, I expect you home by midnight.” Elsa launched up, placing a kiss on her friend’s cheek. “Mommy’s little man,” she laughed mischievously as she pulled his cheeks, laughing even harder when he swatted away her hands with a ‘blech’.

“Gross! Please don’t ever do that again.” He shot a glare over to Anna, who was doing a poor job at fighting back her laughter. He pulled his key out his pocket just to be sure they were there before turning back to Elsa, who had already fallen back ungracefully into the couch cushions. “Don’t fuck on the couch while I’m gone. And no house parties,” he grinned smugly when Elsa rolled her eyes at him.

“Oh darn, I better tell the girls our night is cancelled then,” she deadpanned. “Why don’t you get going before they give away your reservations?”

…

“Hey Elsa, you busy tonight?”

Elsa raised a brow as she uncrossed her legs, looking up from her book to take in the sight of her roommate lumbering over her with a face that screamed ‘I need a favor’.

“Let me think,” the woman rested her book down on the coffee table with an over-exaggerated thinking pose. “I know the date last night went well, so it can’t be related to that.” Kristoff came home with a haughty stride and when Elsa called Anna that night she didn’t have any complaints. _And she remembered not to let him order spaghetti which explains why his suit was still clean._

“Anna needs help with English. And I happen to be rooming with the English major that had the top grades in our _entire_ year. You were tutoring _seniors_ in our freshman year. You’re an English whiz-”

“While I see your butter,” Elsa chuckled. “May I remind you I’ve been a dropout for two years now.”

“And you’re trying to tell me that you’ve forgotten how to English on a freshman level? You’ve been doing Advanced English since junior high,” he rolled his eyes.

“How to English?” she repeated in amusement.

“Come on,” Kristoff groaned. “Don’t you wanna help Anna?”

Elsa rolled her eyes but didn't respond. Of course she wanted to help Anna, but she couldn't help but wonder why the redhead never brought it up to her. It’s true she’s never asked Anna about school and well… didn't even know she was a college student… and to be fair she’s never talked about her few years of college at all. _Oh God, I've been so happy daydreaming about sticking my tongue down her throat and… other places… but I’ve never asked her anything about herself. And even worse, Kristoff **did**. If this isn't proof he deserves her more than I do…_

“Did she ask you to ask me?” Elsa’s voice came out softer than she would have liked.

Kristoff seemed not to notice the change in his friend. “Nah I haven't told her I was gonna ask you yet. Didn't want to get myself hooked up in something for you to tell me no. But there’s no way you'll say no to helping Anna not flunk out of college right?” 

Elsa cursed under her breath at how easily Kristoff was manipulating her. Still, Anna needed help, even if she didn't ask for it herself, and now that Elsa knows, she can't just let the redhead fail. She didn't want to admit that Kristoff had her pinned on this one, but apparently she didn't have to. He already pulled out his phone, the look of victory painting his expression.

“Hey Anna guess what,” he didn't even give the girl on the other end a chance to respond before he continued. “I just got you some help on that English assignment you mentioned last night. The super-duper important one.” He winked at Elsa, earning a groan. “No it’s not me. It’s Elsa! She can probably teach you better than your professor can.” At that, Elsa blushed. It would be great if she could say it was because of a compliment well-received, but really her thoughts were nowhere near that clean. _Oh, I can think of a few things I’d like to teach her._ “Yeah, so tonight it is!”

“Tonight!?” She wasn’t nearly prepared enough to see Anna tonight. Not with the image of last night still fresh in her head. What she had to do to get to sleep that night after Belle left...

“I asked if you were busy tonight.” He pulled the phone away from his ears. “Besides this thing is due soon.”

Elsa groaned, rubbing her temples. Tonight was going to be her test of discipline.

Kristoff left for Anna immediately and Elsa began coming up with her plan of action. They would work on Anna’s assignment in the living room with Kristoff. She doubted whatever it was would take her more than a few hours to steer Anna in the right direction. 

As soon as the blonde stepped out of a much needed cold shower she checked the time. It was about a half past seven and Kristoff should be back with the girl any minute now. Elsa figured she could have Anna back home by 10. _Midnight the latest depending on just how much work I have to put into her._

_Jesus Elsa, phrasing!_

A knock at the door signalled it was show time, whether she was ready or not. And she was so not ready.

Five deep breaths weren't enough to prepare her when she pulled the door open and met only one person on the other side. Familiar twin braids immediately started working their magic on her brain and with no Kristoff in sight to buffer, Elsa could already feel her plan falling to hell.

“W-where’d Kristoff go?” _Not even a ‘hi’ Arendelle? Who raised you like this?_

“He said he was going to hang out with his brother tonight.” Anna fiddled with one of the braids hanging off her shoulder. “It’s just me, if that’s okay.”

“You’re more than okay,” Elsa's mouth moved faster than her brain. “Sorry, I just didn't expect it to be just us.”

“It’s just us.” Her hand moved up to push a bang behind her ear before it patted the backpack hanging off her shoulder. “And Shakespeare.”

“Your assignment is on Shakespeare?” 

“Well no. But it might as well be, I’d be just as lost.”

Elsa laughed, feeling a little more at ease as she invited the girl in. Maybe she could pull this off after all.

…

An hour in and the two had made a significant dent in progress. Apparently, Anna’s biggest problem came from the research aspect of a paper. She had problems focusing her topic and planning her points which made the actual research aspect a very difficult one for her to manage. Once Elsa managed to rein in her straying thoughts and got the girl to focus on a single thought at a time, Anna was able to blast through with ease. She now had enough source material to pick, choose, and refuse, and her plan was virtually flawless. Now it was just a matter of filling in the actual content, which she claimed was a no-brainer for her and her overactive word spew brain.

Anna stretched contently while Elsa flopped back in the bed. 

In the living room, Anna was distracted by the tv and the allure of a refrigerator just a few steps away. In Elsa’s distraction-free bedroom, they could concentrate… as best as one could concentrate with a thick cloud of lust hanging over them.

“I can't believe this is the first time I've been to your bedroom,” Anna finally looked around her to take in the powder blue walls, void of any personality save for three large intricate snowflakes painted into a corner of the room. 

“It’s not much to see.” Elsa spoke half-mindedly. Unlike Kristoff, she didn’t have a television set in her room nor a plethora of posters nor... really much of anything. Her room was simply a bookshelf that went to the ceiling and took up half the wall, a queen-sized bed with no more than two head pillows and one body pillow, and a large wooden desk pushed up against the wall in the corner. “It’s more of a study but with a bed, so really it’s an all in one. I’d install a toilet but well-”

Anna snorted, already imagining how that could go badly real quickly. Smoothly, she shut her laptop, deciding that she had done more than enough work tonight and it was time to let her fizzling brain rest. Anna’s eyes fluttered to a burnt out blonde laying back lazily and simply staring at the ceiling. “So you’re an English major.”

“I _was_ an English major.” Elsa corrected as she sat up with a grunt. When their eyes met, Elsa couldn’t help the way her head tilted slightly, or the fact that she smiled in a way that showed her teeth (something she was always very conscious of _avoiding_ ). “What do you study?”

“Architecture.”

Elsa blinked once. Then twice. And then a third time. And then it digested. “Architecture? You?”

Anna frowned, obviously offended. “What?”

“Nothing,” Elsa replied quickly, realizing her rudeness. “I’m sorry, I just expected you to say Liberal Arts. But Architecture, that’s pretty badass Sommerfield, I’m thoroughly impressed.”

Anna’s face became a blushing mess. “Th-thank you.” She cleared her throat in an attempt to get rid of that awful stutter. “Why did you choose English?”

Elsa shrugged. “I’m good at it. I love reading. I wanted to be a teacher.” Anna beamed at that and the blonde felt like she had done nothing to deserve such a blessing.

“That sounds great! Then why’d you drop out?”

Elsa groaned and her head fell into her hands. “Things were… stressful. And complicated.” Elsa was struggling to bring herself to tell this story. The only person who knew the full, honest truth as to why she dropped out just before completing junior year was Kristoff, but when Anna’s hand wrapped around her own and she looked up to meet those eyes…

“Kristoff and I were living together since our freshman year. We both had family situations we were trying to get away from as in, he had too much family and I only had my parents who were constantly bickering. When Kristoff broke his leg playing football, it was... a strain on us. I didn’t mind helping him out however I could, he was my best friend after all and left to his own devices, that blonde idiot would try to throw down his crutch and run out onto the field if the team ‘wasn’t playing right without him’.” Elsa rolled her eyes, earning a laugh from her redheaded audience. “But, I had to take extra shifts at the coffee shop I worked at so we could meet rent payments and after a while, pill-induced sleep followed by coffee-induced morning alertness was becoming… taxing…”

Elsa was surprised when she felt Anna’s finger swipe just below her eye, the same hand that was gripping her own like a lifeline. Anna couldn’t possibly see the way her eyes were clouding up with the way Elsa was sure to keep her head down. “It must have been rough.”

Elsa felt a pang in her chest at the memories, but she simply nodded. “Then the announcement came about a week or two before my junior year midterms. My parents had finally filed for divorce. I expected it, yes, but that didn’t change the fact that I couldn’t focus long enough to write my name properly after I got the news. I failed all of my exams… All the ones I actually went to anyway.”

Anna was silent for a few moments and Elsa was left in her own head, fighting off demons of the past she had caged away to the back of her mind up till now. The blonde woman was neck-deep in her darkness before Anna’s gentle tug at her hand reeled her back into the light that was her radiance. “You’re a good judge of character ya know.”

Between the completely unexpected compliment and the soft lips against her knuckles, Elsa wasn’t sure which played a bigger role in the rosiness of her cheeks. “I… what?”

“When you said you thought I was in Liberal Arts. That was my original plan.” Anna explained. “Of course, my dad wasn’t too thrilled to hear that. He said it was a hippie major for confused teens who wanted to waste time and say they went to college.” Elsa chuckled despite herself and Anna smiled at that. “Architecture was the compromise, although my genius plan was to switch my major after the first year. I didn’t expect to completely fall in love with the idea of seeing something I create on paper become a super-sized piece of real functional art!” Anna spoke the last part breathlessly and Elsa could easily see her passion. “That and Liberal Arts wasn’t quite as ‘liberal’ as I thought it was.”

How Anna had managed to pull her out of a darkness that at one time in her life took her months to fight her way through was… remarkable. Elsa stared at their hands on the bed, fingers entwined so tightly it was as though both of them were scared to let go. The blonde laughed but she didn’t quite know why. She just looked back up at Anna - _Were we always this close?_ \- and everything felt alright. “You’re incredible.”

There were alarms going off in their heads. Louder than ever before even. Elsa was the one that closed most of the gap between them; Anna barely needed to lean an inch for their lips to meet. Elsa’s free hand found itself wrapping around Anna’s waist, and had they stopped there, it wouldn’t have been much different from any of the others they shared before.

If hands had never found their way under thin shirts. If one kiss was the end of it. Maybe if Anna’s head never fell back onto the pillow as Elsa’s lips strayed along the body once covered by a shirt long abandoned. 

Maybe they could have avoided ever crossing _that_ line.


	4. Confidence

There was something about mornings. Maybe it was the song that birds shared at sunrise. Or perhaps the invasive sunlight that forced its way through curtains. Could it be the sheer liveliness that was carried over the morning breeze? There was something about mornings that she could never quite put her finger on, but Elsa always hated mornings. This morning was… different.

The light that tapped against her eyelids didn’t seem so invasive today. Elsa stretched, a smile already lining her face and a dull satisfying ache thrummed throughout her body. A hum escaped her lips with the pop of her back. The sheets had never seemed so soft against her body.

_Wait…_

It took a few minutes for Elsa’s mind to pull away from the lull of dreams gone by, but when it did, she finally noticed that her bedsheets were draping off her nude form.

Prude… was an understatement. Elsa does not sleep naked. It doesn’t matter if she’s alone. It doesn’t matter if nobody is going to see. Elsa does _not_ sleep _naked_. _Then again, I’ve never slept this good in my life. Maybe I should make this a habit_.

For once it wasn’t hard for Elsa to roll herself out of bed. She may have been an early-riser, but that never meant she was a morning person. Again, today was different. So wonderfully different.

A tickling against her back made her realize that at some point, her french braid had come undone. She couldn’t find it within herself to care. 

She took the moment to admire the room, something she can’t recall ever doing before. The warm hues that painted her bedroom walls were… welcomed. The way the birds’ song filled the air felt more beautiful than annoying. The subtle rhythm of a not so gentle snore filled her chest with a feeling she’s never known before. Elsa looked fondly over at her bed and the nest of strawberry-blonde hair peeking out from the messy sheets.

And that’s when everything froze. Her body became rigid and cold.

_You mean that really happened? Ohh, God no._

Some shuffling followed by a cat-like yawn and stretch, and all of Elsa’s fears were confirmed when those gorgeous teals looked back at her dazily. The girl had the most endearing smile, if not a bit goofy, as she clutched the sheets close and took in her surroundings. Elsa could practically see the dots connecting in Anna’s head, slow as that process seemed.

Elsa could see as the realization dawned on her face and it fell completely. Anna’s mouth dropped open an inch per second.

“That wasn’t a dream,” the redhead breathed. 

Anna sat up, the sheets pooling around her hips and flushed freckled skin seemed to glow under the early morning rays. As much as Elsa knew that was simply impossible, it didn’t stop her eyes from seeing it that way. Everything about her was perfect, even with that lion’s mane bedhead. Her skin, her neck, her shoulders, her breas-

“Oh my lord, you are so naked,” Elsa rambled, her cheeks pinking brightly.

“Well, so, so are you!” Anna sputtered, pulling the sheets over her chest. “You’re nakeder!”

“It’s my room!” Despite her argument, Elsa pulled open a drawer near her and draped herself in a black cotton robe. They were both breathing hard, trying to wrap their heads around the events of last night. “So,” she began with a nervous chuckle. “That really just happened…”

“We weren’t supposed to do that…” Anna shrunk deeper into the sheets. She groaned. “What do we do now?”

Elsa looked at her and the girl looked back at her expectantly, waiting on the answers. Thing is, Elsa didn’t have any answers. Not even close. Right now, she was using all of her mental fortitude to not have a complete breakdown. And even then, she wasn’t doing a very good job at that. Her fingers were running feverishly through her hair and she could feel herself sweating. “I honestly don’t know.”

“This is my fault, I should’ve just done my work at home.”

“No! No Anna, I’m not going to let you blame yourself for this.” Elsa stumbled back and leaned against her drawer. “I mean, what was I thinking? I could’ve disconnected the TV and we could have stayed downstairs. And Christ, if bringing you up to my bedroom wasn’t bad enough... I was so stupid, I shouldn’t have kissed you.” At some point in her rambling, Elsa had begun pacing her room floor, Anna watching from the bed as she clutched sheets to her chest for dear life.

“Well, you can’t blame yourself for that. We’ve kissed before, how were you supposed to know we’d end up having-”

“Please don’t say it.” Elsa cut off her off quickly, pausing in her pacing to stare at the girl in her bed. “We kissed in a bed, where the hell else could it have gone with the way we’ve been acting like a couple of horny teenagers all this time?” A trembling hand wiped at her face as she tried to calm herself down. “I can’t believe I did this to Kris…”

It was barely louder than a mutter but Anna heard her loud and clear and the redhead sprung to life, wrapping her arms around Elsa as if to tell her everything would be alright. Of course in this situation, she couldn’t just say it. She couldn’t make those kinds of promises so lightly. She could however, hold the blonde woman tight against her and press a kiss against her neck, just below the ear, and whisper another assurance. “You didn’t do it to hurt him.”

“My intention doesn’t change the result.”

“But it does make it easier to stomach.”

Elsa couldn’t find the words, or the strength, to retort. Finally, she brought her arms up to Anna’s waist, and returned the weak embrace. She didn’t even bother to comment on Anna’s nakedness or the fact that she was the same under the black robe. 

She didn’t just want this anymore. If she was being honest with herself, she never just _wanted_ this. She _needed_ this. Elsa needed the girl wrapped in her arms the way people need air. It was a need she never knew she had until she met Anna and she couldn’t just shake it off just because she realized she _shouldn’t_ have Anna.

“I can’t believe we thought this would work.” Elsa gave a self-deprecating chuckle. Anna was kind enough not to comment. “I can’t believe I thought I could do this.”

They stood in silence, Anna stroking soothing circles into Elsa’s back against the cotton robe. It was noticeably doing wonders for her panic but it didn’t ease Elsa’s guilt in the slightest. Especially when she considered that right now she was being comforted by Anna for sleeping with Anna. She grit her teeth and pulled the girl in tighter, feeling like the most inconsiderate idiot in history. “I’m sorry.”

Anna simply nodded, as if she read Elsa’s mind and completely understood. “Do you regret it?” Elsa didn’t miss the way Anna’s voice cracked, as if she was scared to hear the answer.

“No. God, no. It was probably the best decision I’ve ever made ever.” And as ridiculous as that sounded, it didn’t sound any less sincere. Plus it made Anna laugh which made the moody blonde feel like she was on top of the world.

“It was a _little bit_ mindblowing.” Anna teased.

Elsa grinned. “Just a little bit? Are you sure?”

Anna hummed, fiddling with the strip of fabric that held Elsa’s robe closed, acting as though it was suddenly the most interesting thing in the world. “Hmm, you know I’m not sure. I might need a reminder.”

Elsa played along seamlessly, craving the distraction. The kiss they shared this time was deep and heated. Anna peeled the robe off of Elsa and slid it off her shoulders smoothly. 

This time they were profoundly aware of what they were doing and the wrong of their actions tapped voraciously at the back of their skulls. They just chose to ignore it though, allowing themselves to melt into each other’s forms, completely intoxicated by the heat of their moment.

…

Anna tugged weakly at her jeans, leaning against the door for support and cursing herself for the decision of wearing skinny jeans when she came over the night before. Given, she didn’t expect to have lost all feeling in her legs twice over the course of a few hours. 

She felt a pair of hands come around her waist and helped to finally button the stubborn clothing.

“Thank you,” she breathed as she pressed against the body behind her, tilting her head to place a peck on the blonde’s jaw. Elsa was already dressed in a pair of old sweats and an oversized white t-shirt; she’ll change into something more presentable once she took a shower. “That desk is surprisingly sturdy by the way.”

“I can never look at that desk the same way again.” Elsa laughed with a forced shudder, earning a slap on the arm. The slap was followed by a squeeze to her bicep as Anna’s face fell and became serious. 

“How are we going to handle this?”

Elsa sighed as if she was trying to avoid thinking about that for as long as possible. “I have to tell Kristoff. The sooner, the better.”

The sun was finally up high enough for it to officially be deemed morning but it was still quite early. Probably around 8am or so. Neither of them bothered to check a clock. It was time for Anna to go home and Elsa to start coming up with her speech and considering her last rites.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to tell him? Or at least be there when you tell him?” Although the circumstances surrounding their relationship weren’t ideal, Anna still viewed the blonde oaf as a friend. 

“I’m his best friend, if anyone has to tell him, it’s me.” Elsa gave a smile to at least show she was appreciative of Anna’s offer. “Plus I don’t want you anywhere near the explosion when he blows up at me.”

They shared one last kiss at the Elsa’s bedroom door before opening it and finally allowing reality to invade their little world. Anna walked downstairs with Elsa just two steps behind her. When Anna stopped cold in her tracks at the last step, Elsa almost crashed into her.

“Kristoff! You’re up early!” Anna’s voice was nearly an indistinguishable squeak. Elsa’s heart dropped and she could feel the cold sweat breaking out already. She wasn’t ready for this. He is never up this early.

The man hissed at the sound of Anna’s voice, cradling a coffee like it was the only thing keeping him steady in his seat on the couch. “Anna, I didn’t know you were still here. Spent the night?” Kristoff did his best to speak loud enough to be heard but not so much as to rattle his fragile brain.

_Hangover. A bad one._ Elsa noted as she evaluated the situation with an internal groan.

“Yes,” Anna answered quickly and stiffly, hanging on to the word as she attempted to come up with an alibi. She was caught completely off guard.

Kristoff raised a brow as he took a mouthful of coffee. “Did you get all your work done? I bet Elsa was a big help,” the boy complimented his friend as he raised his mug with a wink.

“Most of it.” Anna replied truthfully, trailing off and hoping Kristoff wouldn’t question. Meanwhile, Elsa was still stalk-still behind her, completely shell-shocked and speechless. The idea was to tell Kristoff as soon as possible, but neither of them expected for it to be possible this soon.

Kristoff looked over the two with a frown. “Any particular reason you two are frozen stiff on the staircase? Do I stink?” He sniffed his collar, grimacing as he detected a faint odor. “Okay yeah, I need a shower.”

He stood up, downing the last bit of his caffeine while making his way past them and toward the bathroom, mumbling apologies for his offensive stench as he passed.

It wasn’t until the bathroom door shut that Elsa took what felt like her first breath since they came downstairs. She swiped her keys off the rack and started cowing Anna out of the room as quickly as she could manage.

“I’m dropping Anna home now!” She announced, only hearing enough of Kristoff’s response to be sure that he heard her, even if she had no idea what he said. It wasn’t important. She dragged the redhead practically the whole way to the car and made it to Anna’s house in record timing.

...

“What, no flowers?” Elsa rolled her eyes and invited herself in, the brunette woman closing the door behind her with a smirk. “To what do I owe the pleasure Arendelle? Am I about to get lucky?” Belle teased.

“If you call a good laugh at my expense ‘lucky’ then sure.” Elsa responded, tossing herself onto the couch with the grace of a drunk seagull.

It had been three days since that morning after she and Anna crossed the line. Three days of utter madness. Elsa couldn’t bring herself to talk to Kristoff properly, let alone admit to what she had done. Anna also hadn’t come over since that day and the redhead had been noticeably less chatty and more cautious of every word she typed. They agreed to slow things down until Elsa spoke to Kristoff and gave him time to cool off. Based on that, they would decide what would happen between them.

Now, they just needed Elsa to grow a pair and face the music. Something she chickened her way out of at every opportunity. If she left things the way they were, nothing would happen until she was on her deathbed.

She needed to take control of this. And when she considered that, only one woman came to her mind.

“I’m flattered,” Belle sat down, crossing a leg and placing a bookmark in the short novel she had sitting open on the coffee table. Belle’s apartment was dark and gave the impression of a cafe rather than a home. Her television set downstairs was ancient but Elsa knew she had a flat-screen upstairs that she recently acquired to sate her newfound video-game obsession. “Please, feel free to entertain me.”

“Never one to beat around the bush.” Elsa laughed as she adjusted herself to sit up straight in the sofa that was admittedly comfier than the one she and Kristoff owned. _Seriously, how much did she pay for this and where do I get one?_

“Tick-tock Elsa, time is wasting. I’m about a minute away from rescinding my southern hospitality.”

“You’re not from the south.”

“Now you have ten seconds.”

“Okay okay,” Elsa threw her hands up. “But can I take you for coffee first? Being in this place makes me crave a Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate.”

Belle hummed with a smile, already kicking on her sneakers from under the coffee table.

There was a coffee shop within walking distance, but it was no Starbucks, much to Elsa’s disappointment. The little menu featured drinks she was completely unfamiliar with, but Belle ordered drinks for both of them, and Belle knew her tastes.

When the drink was delivered to their table, Elsa was far from disappointed. Belle’s was some kind of French, white-chocolate, something or another.

“Alright, you’ve stalled enough.” Belle spoke over the rim of her cup.

Elsa rested her half empty cup of dark chocolate heaven down reluctantly. In truth, she was preparing for what she would say from since she decided she would come see the brunette. So far, she was still drawing a blank on how to approach this. “I did something horrible and now Kristoff is going to kill me when he finds out. I have to tell him what happened, but I just can’t bring myself to do it.”

“Hmm,” Belle hummed thoughtfully, giving the blonde across the table her full attention now. “So you finally slept with An-”

“DON’T JUST SAY IT!” Elsa launched up from her chair, hands flat against the table as she drew the attention of the few other patrons and the barista. More than a little embarrassed, Elsa gave a nod to everyone before sliding shamefully back into her seat. “How did you know?” This time she was sure to keep her volume as hushed as possible.

Belle was clearly amused, even if she didn’t outright laugh at her. “If you must know, I knew it was her since Game Night.” She paused with a smile as Elsa groaned, her head hitting the table. “If it helps your embarrassment though, I wasn’t sure until after your little move in the kitchen.”

Belle gave a knowing smirk as Elsa groaned into the wood of the small table. “Gee thanks,” she deadpanned. “Because I didn’t make a big enough ass of myself that night.”

The brunette across the table hid a small giggle. “All the better to tease you with my dear. But the thing that’s really mind boggling to me is this: If you’re so crazy about her, why is Kristoff the one dating her? I know you two share half a brain sometimes but...” Belle trailed off, obviously satisfied with the way she was clearly getting under Elsa’s skin.

Elsa sat up looking dejected, as if she questioned the same thing herself. “Because he met her first,” she droned.

Belle scoffed. “And Kristoff was in the process of asking for my number when you swooped in, spotted my book and started quoting Jane Austen. I wasn’t even reading a Jane Austen.”

“No, but it was safe to assume that anyone leisurely reading an anthology of Kate Chopin short stories must be well acquainted with Jane Austen too.” Elsa smiled a bit at the memory. “I’d be insulted if you weren’t.”

Belle seemed to share in the fondness of the memory, although her lips pulled into something slightly more mischievous. “You even made a joke about Kristoff ‘taking no pleasure in a good novel’; a joke that flew right over his head might I remind you.” They shared a laugh before Belle continued. “The Elsa I saw that day was charming and confident. I saw a woman that knew what she wanted and knew how to get it and could _definitely_ work a whip,” Belle purred in a way that commanded goosebumps along Elsa’s arm. “What I didn’t see was this disappointing blob of hopeless confusion that just screams ‘useless lesbian’ that’s currently sitting across from me.”

With that, Belle sat back in her chair and crossed her legs with disinterest, taking a sip of her coffee for good measure. Meanwhile Elsa sat stunned and it took a few moments for her brain to shake off Belle’s frankness.

“What do I do?”

Belle rolled her eyes with a groan. “You already told me what you have to do. You have to tell Kristoff, so just tell him. Besides, I’m pretty sure he already has a pretty good idea what happened, he’s surprisingly observant for an idiot.”

Elsa’s eyes widened more than they probably ever had before. “Oh God, you think so?” Elsa started going over the events of that day and if they had done anything that could have given them away. _Oh please, we were so obvious you’d have to be an absolute numbskull with the IQ of a roasted peanut to not know what happened._

“Elsa, if you keep acting like this I’ll have half a mind to flog _you_ for a change.”

“Can you please stop talking about that?”

“Not if you’re going to keep this up.” Belle sighed into her cup. “Apparently it’s the only time you’re confident.”

...

“Hey Els, I got your text. Was planning to go jogging today so can we make thi- WOAH!” Kristoff stopped midway through the doorway of their apartment the moment he laid eyes on Elsa sitting there on the couch. “What the hell is that in your hands?”

“A crutch.” Elsa spun the small wooden plank in her hand.

“Umm no, that’s not a crutch, that’s a fucking paddle.” Kristoff closed the door behind him but still stuck as close to it as possible with his hand on the knob. Just in case. “I thought we agreed that toys stay in the bedrooms.”

“It’s not a toy.” Elsa spoke firmly as she stood and Kristoff turned the knob slightly behind him, eying her every move. “We have to talk.”


	5. Ground Rules

_“Hey Els, I got your text. Was planning to go jogging today so can we make thi- WOAH!” Kristoff stopped midway through the doorway of their apartment the moment he laid eyes on Elsa sitting there on the couch. “What the hell is that in your hands?”_

_“A crutch.” Elsa spun the small wooden plank in her hand._

_“Umm no, that’s not a crutch, that’s a fucking paddle.” Kristoff closed the door behind him but still stuck as close to it as possible with his hand on the knob. Just in case. “I thought we agreed that toys stay in the bedrooms.”_

_“It’s not a toy.” Elsa spoke firmly as she stood and Kristoff turned the knob slightly behind him, eying her every move. “We have to talk.”_

_“Yeah, I got that from the text. What I didn’t get was the memo to bring a weapon.” He began to cautiously drop his guard, releasing the knob again. “Please don’t tell me I’ve been a bad boy or something either because I will literally puke all over this floor. You can’t just jump the fence on me now Els.”_

_“Eww, Kristoff, please can you just take this seriously.”_

_“Not when you’re holding **that**!” The oaf motioned drunkenly at the board as if it were something alien. “I’m stuck between taking you too seriously and not seriously at all; there’s no in-between here!”_

_Elsa sighed and stepped toward him but after the second step, the boy started wildly clawing at the door until he found the knob. Within a second he was out in the halls chanting “Nope” and it didn’t take long before Elsa could’ve sworn she heard the loud tumble of his old truck as it roared to life and peeled out onto the street._

…

Anna’s roaring laughter didn’t make it any easier on Elsa as she recounted the embarrassing tale over the phone. She waited with rosy cheeks and a pout as she sat on the bench. 

When the pure absurdity of what she had done finally weighed on her, she spent about ten minutes groaning while balled up in the corner of the living room, crippled by her own shame. Then she took in a deep breath. And then spent another five minutes trying to bash her own skull in with her paddle. Whatever wicked being invaded her brain and made her think even for the slightest second that _that_ was a good idea needed to be evicted, _now_!

When she was finally convinced that there was something in the air of this apartment that made her mentally inept, Elsa threw the damned thing on her bed (after strongly contemplating tossing it out the window), grabbed her keys, and stormed out of her home with no set destination.

She didn’t bother actually driving though. She made it as far as a bench a few steps away from the entrance of the the apartment building before she decided that she actually couldn’t keep herself from freaking out long enough to trust herself to drive. 

_Is this madness? I think this is madness. I’m fucking insane._

Elsa pulled her phone out while performing some deep breathing exercises, fully aware of how people were starting to create some distance while they walked by as quickly as their legs could shuffle. She had to talk to someone.

_But maybe that was a mistake…_

Elsa considered hanging up on the redhead, _who was still laughing_. It’s literally been five minutes since Elsa admitted what she had done and Anna didn’t sound like she would be letting up anytime soon.

“You really know how to keep someone from going over the edge,” Elsa muttered.

“I-I’m so so-sorry Els! I jus-HA… I just can’t believe you actually did that!” Elsa had to give her credit for at least getting that last sentence out just fast enough to not have to laugh through it again.

“It made sense at the time!” She wasn’t even sure why she was trying to defend herself on that. Elsa groaned a whiny bellow as she rubbed her forehead with the hand that wasn’t holding the phone - and Anna’s laughter - directly in her ears.

“Okay, okay, I’m done.” Anna managed to wheeze out before taking a few calming breaths. “I’m sorry.” And despite all the laughing that came before, Elsa could tell she was sincerely sorry.

“It’s okay, I would laugh at myself too if I didn’t already look and feel like I belong in a mental institute right now.” The blonde sighed, watching as a businessman flinched when he accidentally made eye contact while trying to hobble along past her. “I don’t know if I can do this.”

“You can.”

“Can I really?”

There was a pause and Elsa could hear some shuffling in the background over the phone. “Where are you now?”

“Umm, on the bench outside the apartment. Why?” Elsa heard what sounded like a door slamming. “Anna, what are you doing?”

“Elsa Arendelle, you have two choices! You can either sit there like a self-loathing sack of potatoes while you wait for me to figure out the bus routes to get from here to there or you can come pick me up and let me cheer you on!” The redhead somehow sounded more upbeat and bubbly than ever. It was slightly nauseating Elsa admitted guiltily to herself, though she would never say it out loud. She couldn’t quite place why that tone was so grating to her though. “I was captain of my cheer team in high school ya know!” _Ah that’s why, I fucking hated those sexy-ass snobs._ Anna sounded too adorable in her pride for Elsa to shoot her down though.

“My full name? Seriously? When were you hanging around Belle exactly?” The blonde teased instead, finding some humor in her ridiculous situation. “Besides we agreed I needed to tell Kristoff alone. And that we’re not supposed to see each other until then.”

“Yeah, I actually want to be able to see you again before I’m gray.” _Ah, that mocking deadpan is such an improvement._ “I’m starting to consider that this may have been your plan all along to bed me and then never see me again. Very sneaky Elsa Arendelle, very sneaky indeed.”

“You’re officially on the list of people that can never know my middle name.” The blonde wasn’t even sure when she had started smiling to herself. How easily she flowed into pure contentment with this girl was both a frightening pleasure and a wonderful enigma.

“Confident Elsa has real bizarre timing. We could’ve used her about half an hour ago.” Anna teased. “Are you coming for me or not? I’m actually terrified of the bus.”

Elsa rolled her eyes but gave in to the redhead’s request. Whether it was simply because she wanted to see her or because maybe Anna may have been on to something when it came to that ‘seeing each other before they were gray’ comment, Elsa decided against reading too deeply into it.

Of course, there were ground rules. 

“No kissing, no touching, no flirting-”

“What constitutes flirting exactly? Because this whole ground rules thing is a bit of a turn-”

“See that right there,” Elsa leveled the girl grinning at her mischievously with a stare that her mother would appreciate. “None of that.” Anna stuck her tongue out impishly from the passenger’s seat. “No prolonged eye contact, which technically falls under the no flirting rule-”

“What? Eye-contact is so _not_ flirting.”

“Is too.”

“Oh really, because I’m pretty sure I’ve seen you and Kris having a staring contest. So you two were flirting?”

“What? Gross. That was different.” Anna hummed mockingly. “It was! It was… a bout of champions.” Elsa spoke with such a ridiculously exaggerated tongue roll, Anna barked out something that was somewhere between a cough and a laugh.

“Right, right, no longing eye-contact _unless of course_ we’re having a bout of champions. Anything else?”

The two shared in a fit of giggles as Elsa pulled up to a red light, now just a block away from the apartment. And the moment the car came to a complete stop there, everything weighed on Elsa’s brain again and her smile fell.

It was easier to distract herself when she wasn’t right within the vicinity of the apartment. Now there she was with Anna, who was technically still the girl her best friend/roommate was supposed to be dating. The girl she was never supposed to touch. The girl she was supposed to back away from. The girl she had the best sex of her life with last night. And now they were on their way to tell that same best friend/roommate that Elsa _betrayed_ him.

“And confident Elsa is out the window again.” Elsa felt a hand slip into hers, a direct violation of rule #2.

With one hand on the wheel and the other captured limply atop her thigh, Elsa knew she shouldn’t be here. This shouldn’t have happened. This girl should not be in her car right now, looking at her in that way, holding her hand like a lifeline. Elsa’s lifeline.

“Are you okay?” Anna didn’t bother disguising the concern in her voice this time.

“I’m fine,” Elsa breathed and neither of them could tell whether it was a statement or a question. “Do you think Kris is home yet?”

“If he is, I’m here for you. Both of you.”

“Anna,” Elsa began with a warning.

“Elsa please just let me be there. He may be your best friend, but he’s still my friend. I care about him and I care about you.” Anna pleaded softly. “I just want to be a part of this, is that okay?”

The older woman sighed, signalling as she turned into the parking area of her apartment. She could already see the old truck parked in its usual place, which was actually another neighbor’s spot; the old lady didn't drive, and Kristoff usually did her grocery shopping for her as a favor and a thank-you for the spot. Elsa could feel the dread practically bubbling up her throat. She swallowed it as best she could.

By the time she pulled into her parking space, Elsa felt as though she was barely hanging on to the last bits of oxygen left in the car. She loosened the seatbelt so quickly it nearly snapped her in the face. She didn’t dare look at the redhead sitting beside her. She could practically feel the concern over her shoulder.

_Come on Arendelle, this is pathetic! Pull yourself together!_

Taking a deep breath through her nostrils, Elsa pushed her door open and practically threw herself out the car, just barely avoiding tripping over her own feet and tumbling onto the pavement. Anna watched with wide, uncertain eyes as the blonde walked over to her side of the car and opened the door for her.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Anna asked, tentatively placing her hand in Elsa’s.

“I am so _not_ okay,” Elsa breathed. “Kristoff is my best, and technically my only real friend. I really feel like I fucked him over this time, and I wouldn’t blame him if he never forgives me.”

“I thought you two had problems with girls before. You’re still like brother and sister now right?”

“This is different.” Elsa helped steady the shorter girl to her feet but couldn’t find the strength to look at her. “ _You’re_ different.”

Anna shuffled her feet a bit nervously. “A good different I hope.”

“Good in the worst possible way.” Elsa could feel the self-deprecation in her smile. When Anna’s eyes flicked up at her, she felt her heart constrict in her chest. No way this girl should still have that kind of effect on her. _Shouldn’t this be wearing off by now?_

“You’re staring.” Anna commented with the tiniest, softest hint of a grin. “That’s in direct violation of rule #4.”

“Actually the rule was no prolonged eye-contact.” Elsa corrected with a small, deceptively confident smirk. “So it’s fine as long as you stop staring back.”

Anna hummed. “I’m starting to feel like we’re venturing dangerously close to rule #3 territory, which will end in rule #1 territory if you’re not careful.”

Elsa pushed out a breath in what could have been a small laugh. As Elsa leaned in toward her, Anna’s eyes slipped shut out of reflex. The redhead was completely surprised when she felt a pressure settle against her chest, just under her head. The girl’s eyes opened slowly and her hands reached up and around the taller girl’s shoulders, a hand pressed into a nest of messy blonde hair and adjusting her head to rest her chin comfortably atop the other girl’s skull. It was an odd sight to her, seeing the taller girl curl herself into someone that seemed so small, hands desperately clutching the back of her shirt like she was afraid she would lose her at any moment.

“You’re incredible,” Elsa breathed a shuddering breath against Anna’s chest. “The better you make me feel the more scared I become of losing you. I don’t want to lose you. _Either of you._ ”

“You won’t.” Anna answered immediately.

“You don’t know that.”

“I…” This time the younger girl took a few moments to consider her response. “I don’t… I’m sorry Elsa.” And when she felt the moisture against her chest, Anna realized just how sorry she truly was.

…

Their door was truly underappreciated. It wasn’t the newest. Or the cleanest. It wasn’t made of anything fancy, and was more than likely not even solid wood. It had no interesting patterns carved into its face and no embellishments to brag of. Even the knob was simple; the lock was just as ordinary sitting atop it. To the average person, this door was remarkably uninteresting, just a barrier preventing them from their goal of entering the room. That’s it. People just want to get past it. Push it out of the way. Poor door.

How many creeps, freaks, and weirdos has it kept out though? How many friends stood out here in nervous anticipation? Elsa imagined that the count for both were low but she was grateful nonethe-

“ANNA WAI-”

The redhead’s signature knock rapped against the door before Elsa could stop her. The blonde grimaced and hoped that Kristoff was nowhere near the door to hear it. It was as if in an instant her sense of hearing grew to godlike distinction. She stood stock still, trying to pick up on _anything_. When a few seconds passed and she felt like she hadn’t heard a single thing move out of place, Elsa managed to at least relax her shoulders and move them down from her ears.

“I have keys you know,” the blonde spoke in an exaggerated whisper. “I can open the door when I’m ready.”

“Well, I was nervous!” Anna was clearly less practiced with whispering. “And all the suspense and waiting and silence was killing me!”

The sound of the tumbler lock made Elsa’s back snap to attention. A yawn snuck through as the door crept open, a messy head of dirty blonde poking out.

“Hey An-” Kristoff let out an animal-like grunt as his tired eyes suddenly shot open and he took a quick but cautious step back behind the door. He eyed his roommate through the slight crack he left. “You two came to gang up on me or something?”

Elsa put up both her hands. “No more weapons, I swear.”

Even from what little they could see of his face, Kristoff was obviously still very suspicious, looking to Anna expectantly. It took Anna a few minutes, and a gink in the side from Elsa, before she realized she had to prove that she was also unarmed. Kristoff hummed, clearly still a bit reluctant, but the door opened for the girls nonetheless. And despite everything inside her demanding the contrary, Elsa managed to command her legs to a movement that could possibly be considered a stride, Anna slipping in just behind her.

_At least that part of my brain still works._ Elsa mentally congratulated herself on still being at least halfway functional. _But now comes the hard part._

Kristoff raised a brow as he regarded the girls that stopped just past the doorway and, although she was absolutely sure it wasn’t the case, Elsa still felt as though he had them cornered. The man crossed his arms in front of his chest and frowned. “What the hell is going on with you Elsa? You’ve been acting weirder than I’m used to.” He then looked over to the redhead, her usual bubbliness completely absent. “And Anna, you’ve been kinda weird too. I barely hear from you anymore.”

He noticed. Elsa swallowed, trying her best not to physically shake the thoughts from her head. _Of course he noticed. Belle was right._

When Elsa managed to pull herself out of her own head, she realized that Anna was rambling and stuttering something about school and... being gassy? Elsa grit her teeth to receive the mental blow she just gave herself. _Fuck, you’re supposed to be the one talking and here you are clamming up while Anna is trying to cover for your sorry ass._

“Kr-Kristoff,” Elsa interrupted Anna’s word spew with as much strength as she could manage, which honestly wasn’t all that much. Kristoff looked somewhat thankful that he no longer had to interpret the words falling out of the redhead’s mouth. “I have something I need to tell you.” Elsa forced each word out before she had time to reconsider.

With that, she captured Kristoff’s full attention. “Yeah, you mentioned something like that in your text and then I came home to meet you waiting on me with a paddle.”

Elsa’s hand found its way the her braid but she tried her best not to fiddle with it too much, trying not to look like the shy schoolgirl she thought she outgrew. “Sorry about that.”

Kristoff huffed, but his face quickly fell into something more sympathetic. “Fine, whatever, just tell me what’s bugging you already. Seriously, I don’t like this… _air_ you two are giving off.”

“The truth is… I… I actually…” _Just say it already!_ “I know you’re gonna be angry, and you have every right to be but… I have to tell you… I…” _Rip the fucking bandaid! Just say it!_ “I slept with Anna.” 

The room fell silent for everyone except Elsa, who was mentally screaming at herself. Her mouth fell open as Kristoff stared blankly at her, clearly caught off guard. Even Anna looked shocked, her lips tightening to a straight line.

She berated herself for her lack of tact, but Elsa somehow convinced herself that if she hadn’t, she would probably still be stuttering and beating around the bush and she would have never managed to get the words out. Now all she could do was measure Kristoff’s reaction. Or in this case, lack thereof.

“Kris-”

“Wait,” Kristoff scratched his head. “You… and you,” he pointed at each of them respectively. “You two had sex?”

“Kristoff, I can’t even _begin_ to tell you how sorry I am.” Anna stepped forward. “I thought we had this under control. Neither of us meant for this to happen.”

“Anna, I told you to let me be the one to do this.” Elsa pulled the other girl back by her shoulder. “Kristoff, if you should be mad at anyone, it’s me. I’m your _best friend_ , if anyone is supposed to always have your back, it’s me, and I completely demolished your trust.”

The man looked between the two before huffing a sigh and dropping his arms. “That’s what all this has been about?” He looked unsure of what to say, struggling to find the right words it seemed. It was an odd look for him, Elsa decided, he was normally not so thoughtful with words. She resisted urging him though, thankful for at least the few moments of peace before he inevitably blew. When Kristoff suddenly brought his arms back up Elsa flinched. “Woah, hey none of that. I’m not mad, I swear. I was just caught a bit off guard.”

“You… what?” Elsa was having trouble wrapping her head around what he said. By all rhyme and reason, he should be furious.

He only shrugged. “It would take a special kind of idiot to miss the way you two look at each other. It was bound to happen at some point. I’m actually surprised it took this long, I was starting to lose confidence in you.”

“But you two were dating,” Elsa blurted out, still just as confused, Anna nodding thoughtfully behind her. “You like her don’t you?”

Kristoff waved his hand dismissively. “To say I don’t like Anna would be a lie, but I’m not head over heels in love with her the way you _obviously_ are,” he smirked. “Seriously you’re a mess.”

Elsa’s face blushed over in embarrassment, and only got redder when she heard Anna attempt to stifle some giggling behind her. “But you two were _dating_.”

“Yeah, because _you_ kept forcing it and pushing me. _You_ made reservations to that restaurant. _You_ made me buy fancy new clothes - though I admit I like them. _You_ wake me up and rush me around to get ready for dates I don’t even plan. _You_ kept saying ‘Anna’s such an amazing girl Kris, you better not lose her, you have to work harder and be serious’. If anything _you_ were dating Anna through me.” Kristoff then gave a clearly exaggerated sigh, “It was getting hella exhausting but if I trusted you to actually step up and go after Anna yourself with the way you’ve been acting, I would’ve called this whole thing off a long while ago and called you out on it.”

Elsa looked down at her feet. She couldn’t honestly dispute anything he said. The only times she saw Anna was when she and Kristoff had a date, and so she planned those dates, making sure everything was always perfect. All of them, except for, “But _you_ invited her to game night.”

Kristoff scratched the back of his neck, looking a little uncomfortable. “Well, like I said, I do like Anna. I was serious about wanting to date her.” His eyes shifted to the redhead for a second before he returned his gaze to Elsa. “But like I said, with the way you two were looking at each other the whole time, I couldn't hope to compete. And yeah, I was kinda pissed at first, and ended up drinking a lot more than I should that night. But when I woke up the next morning and everyone was gone and I really thought about things, I decided I'd be a pretty crappy friend if I didn't help you out. Even if I _did_ see her first.” He bumped his roommate’s shoulder with a chuckle.

Elsa wanted to smile. Should she even risk it? Maybe not yet.

She forced her head up to look at her roommate, still convincing herself that this was all just some elaborate prank and Kris was just waiting for her to let her guard down before he ripped her to pieces. That big goofy grin, while it wasn’t quite what it usually was, was certainly convincing to the contrary though. She risked a smile. A small one.

“Soo,” Anna hummed as she kicked her feet, unsure of what to do with herself. This was far from what either she or Elsa expected. It was like they came war ready and found out their opponents had already surrendered. “I guess we did all that mental prep for nothing.”

“Mental prep?” Kristoff laughed. “Please tell me that’s not what that paddle was all about!”

“Can we forget about that please?” Elsa groaned into her hands.

Anna, having to play devil’s advocate, met the blonde oaf’s laughter. “It totally was!”

It took a while before Kristoff managed to catch his breath and cleared his throat, his expression growing more serious. “But you did go behind my back and that was pretty lowdown Els. I figured you would at least tell me before you let anything happen. I give you your due for coming to me now, but based on what Anna said earlier about ‘having this under control’, things have been happening for awhile now. As my friend, you were supposed to tell me _before_ anything happened.” Guilt washed over the blonde girl’s features. She knew this part was coming, but before she could respond, she felt a heavy arm sling itself around her shoulders before tensing. She’s lived with Kristoff far too long to not know where this was heading. 

Anna nearly felt her heart stop as she witnessed Kristoff swing Elsa’s whole body as he dropped into some kind of kneeling headlock. She watched the two on the floor as Elsa struggled in Kristoff’s grip: Elsa swearing more in one minute than the redhead had probably heard her curse in all their time of knowing each other while Kristoff just laughed like a madman. That is, until she saw the girl’s hand grip his side. Kristoff launched up with a howl and Elsa slipped away panting as she stood, her hair a mess and t-shirt equally as ragged.

It took a few seconds before Kristoff managed to struggle to his feet, throwing his hands up in surrender as he grunted out, “We’re even now.” 

He was surprised when he felt a light bump on his shoulder and looked up to see Elsa looking more relaxed than she’s been over these past few weeks. “Seriously, I owe you one big time.”

Kristoff scoffed. “One? You owe me like five for this one,” he rolled his eyes. “I would say, this better be the last time, but well, I get the feeling I won’t have to worry about that.”

A small kiss placed on his cheek was what made Kristoff realize that Anna was now standing next to him. “I’m sorry for, well, leading you on, I guess. Like even though in your head you weren’t taking it seriously, like _date-date_ seriously, I thought that you were and I didn’t tell you that I wasn’t. Not that I don’t like you, you’re like the sweetest guy ever, just not _like-like-_ ”

“Anna please,” Kristoff chuckled, already feeling his brain start to get overwhelmed again. “We’re cool. Besides, it was fun not hanging out with the guys for a change.” Elsa cleared her throat indignantly. “I know what I said. It’s nice hanging out with a girl that doesn’t curse like a sailor and swing like a boxer.”

“What do you say about me when I’m not around?” Elsa crossed her arms and cocked her hip. “I’m feminine.”

“Please, you haven’t even worn perfume since your parents made you wear it when we graduated high school. That was also the death of,” Kristoff started wiggling his fingers in front of the group as he tried to give his best cheesy spooky voice, “ _The Princess bun._ ”

“Princess bun?” Anna repeated with way more curiosity than Elsa was comfortable with.

“Don’t remind me, please.” Elsa groaned, turning tail to walk towards the kitchen, finally feeling safe to grab some water for her desert of a throat. And then Kristoff made a comment that made her stop dead in her tracks.

“I still have the pictures.”

The blonde was barely able to catch the silhouette of the two as they ran up the stairs, laughing like idiots, and she managed to get to the end of the staircase just fast enough to see Kristoff’s room door slamming. 

“ _Kristoff_ , don’t you fucking dare!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone that stuck with this story! I hope you guys enjoyed it just as much as I have! Special thanks to Froxfiles77 (ffnet) who beta-read this last chapter for me!


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